The 2024 season hasn’t begun, but that isn’t stopping people from discussing the future of the Pittsburgh Steelers beyond the 2024 season. In some ways, they have put themselves in this position with no quarterbacks under contract in 2025. Russell Wilson, Justin Fields and Kyle Allen will all become free agents next March. Maybe they figure out a way to extend Wilson for the last few years of his career. Maybe Fields shows enough to warrant an extension to become the quarterback of the future for the Steelers. But when it comes to the quarterback position, “maybe” doesn’t cut it.
Former NFL OL Geoff Schwartz joined Dave Dameshek on his Minus Three Podcast last week and stated his belief that the Steelers will experience their first losing season under Mike Tomlin. He thinks that could lead to some big changes with the team’s approach at quarterback.
“The problem is just the quarterback,” Schwartz said. “You haven’t found a Big Ben replacement. I mean that’s the problem [that] a lot of teams have, right? When the quarterback leaves, is you haven’t found that next person…Maybe if they finish under .500, they sort of just rip the band-aid off and say we need to find a quarterback. We have to trade up and get that quarterback.
“It’s either you go 2-15, which they’re too good to do that, or just trade up. But you have to acknowledge you’re in this position. They refuse to acknowledge that.”
This makes a lot of assumptions about the 2024 Steelers. The team is projected to have one of the best defenses in the league, and there are reasons to believe the offense will be much improved. They went 10-7 a year ago with less talent—albeit against an easier schedule—but a great defense can be an equalizer. If they are able to keep scores down, they don’t need a top offense to win a lot of games.
It is a fair point, however, that the Steelers are in a precarious situation with the future of their quarterback position. If Wilson and Fields don’t work out long term, they will either have to break the bank in free agency or turn to the draft. Selecting in the 15-22 range every year is probably not high enough to obtain a franchise QB. Trading up to secure a top talent could be the best route, but that also adds a ton of risk. Teams typically have to give up quite a haul to move up high enough to select a top quarterback. If that guy ends up being a miss, it can set the franchise back years.
Omar Khan has done things a little differently than Kevin Colbert used to as the Steelers’ general manager, so maybe that is the route they ultimately take should things not work out with their current group. How the Steelers approach their next couple offseasons with aging defensive talent and the need for a long-term option at quarterback will determine how the rest of this decade plays out for the franchise.
